It Can't Be You
by republican
Summary: Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.Please r&r. rating is for mild swareing. Chapter 10 is up!
1. Default Chapter

It can't be you!  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Tear.

Summary: Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

When Haley went to college she lost contact with Lucas. Not because she wanted to, she did it because she had to. When she was dating Nathan in school, he and Lucas were made get along and after a while they became ... not brothers but friends. When Haley and Nathan broke up just before graduation it now was Lucas who was caught up in the middle... and Haley knew it so they talked less and less and then not at all. The two friends hadn't talked in two years. When Haley went home for holidays she avoided everybody. Well except for Payton and Brook. The three girls went to the same school N.Y.U.  
  
Haley, Payton and brook lived in a small but homey apartment. They too had lost contact with the Scott brothers. But unlike Haley they caught up with them at holidays. The three girls were more like sisters now and they knew that Haley didn't want to deal with the awkwardness. They all went to school full time but thy all had jobs as well. This summer they decided to stay in N.Y. and work and just have fun. With no family or anything to hassle them.  
  
The two brothers decided they needed a break. School was out and the basketball season was over. So they figured it was party time. And Nathan really didn't want to go home and be avoided. So the only thing that came to mind they did. Road trip.  
  
Lucas came thudding down the hall in the boy's apartment with a big stack of papers and books. "Man schools out ... put the books down you nerd" Nathan smirked to himself; Lucas hated being called a nerd and Nathan knew it. Lucas dropped all the stuff he'd been holding onto the coffee table that was in front of the couch where Nathan was sprawled out. "Shut up .... We got to decide where were going cuz I'm not doing what you and Tim done on the last trip" Nathan smiled up at him as he shifted himself to get a better look at what was on the table. "No way ... I don't do maps" he said shaking his head vigorously in protest. "Yes" Lucas said matter of factly. "Come on man be adventurous..." Nathan picked up one of the big maps. "..were gonna look like tourists". Lucas laughed at his brother "I'm not going to end up in Texas like you and Tim". Nathan through the map on the table. "Fine but were not taken all of them... so if not Texas where?" the brunette asked laughing. Lucas sat himself on the floor in front of the couch. "I've got a way" Lucas then unfolded the map of America and closed his eyes and pointed his finger in the air "were going to..." he then put his finger randomly on the map. "New York" Nathan said aloud. "o.k. I can deal with that." Nathan then went back to the position he was in before Luke came in and turned on the TV. Lucas took the map and folded it and then hit Nathan on the head with it. "Heeeeyy" Nathan yelled at his older brother. "Were leaving in the morning so get packing." Lucas said as he left the room.  
  
Haley woke up by the horns of the morning traffic. She could ever get to sleep because of the traffic when she first moved here. Now it was just like the birds chirping in tree hill. She got out of bed and went to the kitchen where to her surprise the other girls were up and dressed. "Hey why didn't you guys wake me?" Haley asked a little groggy. "Well you were working last night so we thought it best to leave you where you were." The blond girl said to her. "Yeah you were probably right thanks pay". "You want some breakfast?" Brook chimed in. "yeah... what we got"  
  
After the girls were done with their food. They decided to get some well needed shopping in before they started work. They all had very different jobs, Payton didn't have set hours she done sketches for a local magazine just like in Tree Hill. Brook worked in a clothes shop, Saks, and Haley worked in an accountants. Haley worked really hard in the firm but she just wanted the experience. When the summer came Haley and Brook decided to get an extra job so they got a job in a night club called Belles. Their boss was an asshole but the pay and tips were good.  
  
As the brunette walked up the stairs to the office she shared with her boss (Haley is a PA). Haley looked at the pile of copying and filing that was on her desk 'this is going to be a long day' she thought to herself as she picked up a load of paper and headed for the copying room. Haley decided to work through lunch so that she could get off early that day. But just like Haley she was starving five minutes before lunch ended, so she decided to run to the small café down the street called 'Callaghan's ' . She usually went there on her lunch break but she wanted to get home early so she could get ready for a night on the town with all her friends. Haley practically ran out the door and headed for the café.  
  
Nathan had insisted on his brother driving them to New York. As he didn't go to bed until three am, and Lucas had rudely woken him from his slumber at seven knowing Nathan hadn't packed yet. "Man you got to wake up" Lucas said punching Nathan in the arm while he slept in the passenger seat of their car. "Lucas ... just watch the road I don't want to wake up in a hospital" Nathan groggily said while pushing himself up on the seat. Lucas was mad at him and Nathan knew it. "Are we there yet are we there yet are we there ye..." Nathan was interrupted by the thump he received from Lucas. "Don't you even start with me little brother"  
  
It was after one thirty when the boy landed in New York. They both decided to get something to eat and Lucas remembered there was a little café just around the corner that had good food. 'Callaghan's' if he remembered correctly. Lucas and Nathan both had sandwiches and a coffee to eat. They were talking about whether or not to go out tonight when a familiar brunette came storming through the door. "Hey Kev, can I have the usual" the girl directed at the man behind the counter. Lucas kept staring at the girl while Nathan was preoccupied with his sandwich. "Chicken taka coffee two sugars" the man behind the counter recited at her while handing her her sandwich and her coffee to go. Lucas waited for the girl to turn around. "Thanks put it on the tab" the girl said smiling while making a 180 but she was cut dead in her tracks when she heard the voice from her past.  
  
"Hales". Nathan's head shot up at hearing the name. He couldn't believe his eyes.

Hey ok so there isn't much naley but stay with me there will be. There will also be some brucas. Please r&r. 


	2. Chapter Two

** It can't be you!  
**  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything.

**Summary:**Haley's world is turned upside down when her past become her present.

**Pairings:** Naley – Brucas or Layton? Help me on that one!

**Rating:** PG. could get higher in later chapters.

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Haley looked in shock at the boy in front of her. "Lucas? ... Oh my god ...what are you doing here?" Haley jumped into his arms and gave him a tight hug. "We took a road trip." It took Haley a second to register what Lucas had said. 'He said we... why did he say we' she thought to herself trying hard not to jump to conclusions. Lucas could be referring to anybody. Haley slowly shifted her eyes to the figure at the table Lucas had come from. She thought her heart had literally stopped.  
  
There he was. Just sitting there, looking at her, studying her, Nathan Scott. Haley opened her mouth to say 'hi' but nothing came out. 'Say something shit Hales say something ...anything.' The brunette screamed inwardly. Finally Haley gathered all the courage she could muster and she said it. "Hey Nathan."  
  
He couldn't believe it. It was Haley. Haley James. She was exactly the same. Same chestnut brown hair. Same captivating chocolate eyes. Nathan was hurt to see her squirm when she realized Lucas wasn't alone. After two years of being apart and one of the smartest girls in highschool comes out with 'Hey Nathan'. He wanted to scream and yell at her but his head put his mouth into action. "Hey Hales. Long time no see."  
  
He said it with a cold tone like she was a cousin that you see every five years and make small talk with. She watched the boy go back to eating his sandwich. Lucas broke the silence that had taken over the three of them. "Haley you want to join us?" asking this earned Lucas a glare from his little brother, which he ignored.  
  
Haley kept sneaking glances at Nathan wondering what the hell was in that sandwich to keep him that occupied. When Lucas broke in Haley slapped a fake smile on her face. "Sorry I cant. I got to get back to work." Quickly Haley used the work excuse. She knew that since she worked through lunch she could take a break now but Haley had to get away. "No rest for the wicked huh?" Lucas said trying to lighten the mood. Haley forced a laughed out. Then another silence filled the space between them.  
  
The theme tune to 'The Godfather' came out of Haley's pocket. She nearly jumped a mile when her phone started to vibrate. "That's me" Haley claimed the noise like it was a bad thing. Nathan finally looked up at her. She stuck her hand in her pocket and retrieved a small black camera phone. Lucas had sat himself in his seat waiting for her to finish. When Haley caught Nathan looking at her, he swiftly turned his head to look out the café window. Haley rolled her eyes at the man while answering the phone. "Hello... oh hey what are you up too... oh nothing much..." Nathan looked back to Haley when she said that this was 'nothing much'. He saw the brunette turn away from them and he heard her lower her voice but this just made Nathan more curious to know who she was talking with.  
  
"Tonight... I can't...Mick...fine ok you twisted my arm... bye." As Haley hung up the phone she shoved it into her pocket. She looked at the Scott brothers and smiled sweetly at them. "Ok... I really gotta go so I probably see you's around." Haley began to walk to the exit but turned back to face them. "It was good to see you both again"  
  
Nathan looked at her and saw the genuine smile as she looked at him. Then he lowered his head down knowing just then on the phone she was making a date with this 'Mick'. What kind of name was 'Mick' anyway? When Haley had gone Lucas didn't wait a second before tearing into Nathan. "What the hell was that?" Lucas asked. "What was what?" Nathan said taking a drink of his coffee. "You know what! You just totally ignored her." Nathan looked at his now empty mug and stood up. "You ready to go?" he said it so calmly just as if, a few minutes ago, Haley hadn't been standing right in front of him. Lucas shook his head. Sometimes, Lucas really didn't know what was going on in Nathan's head.  
  
Once Haley turned the corner she stopped and leaned up against the nearest building for support. She thought her legs would give way beneath her. "No". Haley said aloud. If it didn't bother him to see her then she wouldn't let it bother her either. But she couldn't get the sick feeling out of her stomach. She hated that after two years he could still do this to her, have such a considerable affect on her. Haley hated it even more when it seemed that she had no affect on her what so ever.  
  
Haley walked up the stairs to the office her boss was in. "hey sue, can I have a minute?" the black haired woman looked up at her and nodded. "The thing is I think I'm coming down with something... and since I did work through most of lunch, I was wondering if I could go home early" Haley put on her most innocent face. "Yeah go home and get into bed. I'll see you Monday morning. Haley gratefully smiled at her boss and walked back out the way she came in. she had to talk to someone.  
  
As the two brothers walked down the street in complete silence together, Nathan's mind kept wondering back to Haley. She hadn't changed much. She still looked good, real good. Do you think she has a boyfriend? Nathan asked himself. Probably that 'Mick' guy. Lucas saw Nathan scrunch up his face and knew instantly that he was thinking about her. "You know, you could have been a bit nicer to her" Lucas said looking straight ahead of him. "Nicer to whom?" Nathan asked playing dumb staring at his brother. Lucas grumbled at his stubbornness. "Fine. You want to pretend that we didn't see Haley we'll do that..." Nathan looked down at his feet not knowing what to say. "So what are we doing tonight?" It was the first thing that came into his head. Lucas scoffed at Nathan's persistence. 'This is going to be one hell of a summer' Lucas thought.  
  
Haley ran up the stairs to her apartment hoping Payton would be there. "Hello... Pay you home?" Haley screamed into the empty living room. "Yea I'm in my room" Haley ran into her friend's room and saw Payton on her bed drawing in her sketch book "You're home early. Good day?" Haley laughed and jumped on Payton's bed. "I saw Nathan." Haley decided to just spit it out. Payton looked in shock at Haley. "Where?" she said it in a comforting voice. "In Callaghan's. I went in to get lunch and there they were, Nathan and Lucas." Haley was talking at lightening speed. "Ok Haley slow down. What happened?" Haley's head hung low at the question. "He just totally ignored me. Like I wasn't even there." Haley could feel the tears well up behind her eyes. "Haley come on, you know how Nate is. He was probably in shock. I mean you haven't seen or talked to each other since the summer we went to college." "No, Pay you should have heard him" Haley couldn't keep the tears back any longer. "Ok ok shh. Just tell me what exactly happened." Payton and Haley sat for a good hour talking about Haley's five minute encounter before brook came barging in the front door.  
  
"Honey I'm home. Is anybody else?" Brook thought it would be weird to be talking to herself but she was saved by Payton's voice called out to her. "Yea. In here." Brook walked in the bedroom with a huge smile which soon disappeared when she saw Haley's blotchy red eyes. Payton looked at Haley and then at Brook. "Guess who's in town!"

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Ok so how is it so far? You like? You hate? Please r&r. I just saw the last show on TV a few days ago and I'm gonna die without my weekly dosage but didn't the whole Nathan Haley marriage thing came out of nowhere. Or was that just me. Anyway I'll rap it up. Check out my other fic, it's called 'Lies are Kinder" 


	3. Chapter Three

** It can't be you!  
**  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary:** Haley's world is turned upside down when her past become her present.

**Pairings:** Naley – I've decided it's going to be Brucas and then some Jeyton.

**Rating:** PG. could get higher in later chapters.

**AN:** Ok so my sis pointed out to me a day ago that I have been spelling Peyton and Brooke's names wrong, so I'm very sorry about that because it bugs the hell out of me when other people do it, so again sorry. Thanks to all the reviewers and I know everybody says it but reviews do help me write faster. So on with the story.

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"Nathan and Lucas are in town!" Brooke screamed at her two friends. "When... wait how did we get this info" Brooke asked them. "I ran into them at Callaghan's" Haley managed to get out. Brooke looked at Haley sympathetically. "Ooohhh... so I'm guessing that didn't go so well. So what did wonder boy say now?" Brooke asked knowing she wouldn't like the answer. "Nothing" Haley bit out. "Nothing. What do you mean nothing?" Brooke repeated scrunching up her face not getting what the problem was. "Nothing. Not a word. Oh wait he said 'Hey Hales. Long time no see'" She said the latter imitating Nathan's cold tone. "Oh I get it" Brooke took a seat on the bed next to the two people she trusted most in the whole world.  
  
After a minute Brooke broke the silence. "Hey Hales, if it makes you feel any better when I see that boy next I'll beat the crap out of him for ya" with that the three girls started laughing. It made Brooke and Peyton feel better to see their friend laugh after all the tears. "Hey you know what we need..." Payton managed to get out even though her sides were hurting so bad "... a girls night out on the town". "Yeah.. we could go to that new bar on twenty second". Brooke said with a smile going from ear to ear. "Were going out with the guys tonight, Mick called me earlier... I couldn't say no." Haley said remembering the conversation. "Well we could go out with them, it's no girl's night out but it's better than nothing." Brooke said never turning down a chance to go out with her friends. "Why?... of all places they could go they had to come here..." Haley looked up at the ceiling and whispered "...why o why Lord do you hate me."  
  
The two boys sat in complete silence when they got to there hotel room. Lucas had stopped trying to get his brother to tell him what was going on in his head. "We going out tonight?" Nathan broke the silence. "Yeah... I think I'll call Jake and see if he wants to meet up for a drink". "Shit, I haven't seen Jake in ages. We can enjoy a boy's night and check out the talent here." Nathan smirked at his brother trying to hide the fact that he couldn't stop thinking about a certain brunette.  
  
Lucas sat on his own in the hotel room. He was thankful that Nate had gone for a drink downstairs. Lucas just needed to be by himself and think. 'If Haley was still in the city maybe that meant that Brooke stayed as well.' The last time Lucas seen Brooke was last summer. They made idle small talk; Lucas knew that he had broken her heart when he cheated on her. But she forgave him and he was so grateful that she did. Aside from the fact that Luke knew she didn't trust him, their conversations were so empty and meaningless. They talked about the weather and school, never anything that had any importance in their lives. He hated that he done that to her. He would have given anything to talk to the old Brooke, the fun Brooke who didn't have a care in the world.  
  
Nathan sat at the counter in the bar having a beer. He had left Luke upstairs. His brother asked too many questions and read too much into every little detail. Right now Nathan really didn't need to be analyzed by his brother. He smiled to himself thinking about Haley's ringtone. 'Speak Softly Love'. 'The girl's obsessed.' Nathan laughed thinking about the night that she made him watch all three 'Godfathers' in a row. Nathan was pulled from his thoughts when he heard his name being called out from across the room. "Nathan" Jake Jygalski yelled from the door of the pub. When Jake got to the counter Nathan got up and they done the smashing fists and manly hug thing they always did. Jake just looked at Nathan and then at his drink. "Isn't it a little early for the booze?" Nathan looked at his friend and smiled knowing it was a bit early to be hitting the hooch. "But then again Luke did tell me you guys ran into Miss James so...." Nathan cut Jake off before he could finish. "This..." holding up his beer "...isn't about...her." Jake held up his to hand in defense. "Sure man... whatever you say. So where's Luke"  
  
Brooke, Peyton and Haley made a fashionably late entrance to the restaurant. The whole crew was there, Anna, Dave, Leo, Cassidy, Mick and Shawn. Haley smiled; this was exactly what she needed, a good night out with her close friends. The girls sat down beside them and the night began. "So where we going after this?" Shawn cut in. The girls smiled they could listen to him talk for hours. Shawn and his brother Mick came from Northern Ireland and at first nobody could understand a word they said because of their thick accent but now they didn't even notice it. "I vote we all go to the new bar on twenty second." Brooke shouted over everybody else voices. "Ok Brooke we'll go if you stop yammering on about this stupid club." Peyton said. "Yeah baby" Brooke squealed while clapping her hands.  
  
The group was nearly finished with their food when Brooke shrieked. "Ugh... Pey Hales... we got company." Peyton and Haley glanced over to where there friend was looking. Haley grabs the menu and covered her face with it. "Did they see us?" Haley whispers to Brooke. "Why are you girls whispering" Shawn said a little louder than the girls wanted. "Sshhhh" Haley gave Shawn a dirty look and he looked over to Anna with a questionable look. "Don't look at me, I haven't the got the foggiest." Anna said shrugging her shoulders.  
  
"Well well well, what have we got here." Haley cringed at the sound of Jakes voice. She lowered the menu and smiled at him. Lucas and Nathan had followed Jake to a table not noticing the occupants. "Hey guys, Hale's said you were in town" Peyton had stood up and hugged the three boys giving Jake an extra long hug. Nathan cursed silently to himself and wondered of it would be rude to boot it out the door. "Hey Brooke, how have you been doing?" Lucas asked her while inwardly he was doing a little dance. 'She looked so good' he thought. Brooke just smiled at all three boys not answering the blonde. An awkward silence came over the six people so Shawn decided to break it. "Do you want to join us... agghh." After hearing the question come out of her friends mouth Brooke gave Leo a swift kick under the table, which went unnoticed to the three boys. "Sure" Jake quickly answered before his friends had a chance to say no.  
  
Peyton tore herself from looking at Jake's eyes and introduced everyone. "Guys, this is Anna, Shawn, Leo, Cassidy and Mick." Peyton pointed to her friends individually as she said their names. "And everybody these are our old friends from Tree Hill. Jake, Lucas and Nathan." Peyton put special emphasis on saying Nathan's name. "Ahh sure ya gotta call him something." Mick just blurted it out hearing when hearing Nathan's name being called out. Everybody but Nathan and Haley started to laugh at Mick's blunder. "Sorry it slipped out." Mick apologized to Nathan.  
  
At that point, Anna realized who the boys were. "YOUR Nathan and Lucas Scott." She asked remembering the stories she had heard from the girls. Haley shook her head asking herself how this day could get any worse. "I have to go to the little ladies room!.. Someone come with me." Anna asked looking in the direction of Haley. "Me? Ok" Haley and Anna stood up and walked towards the bathroom. Haley not looking anywhere near Nathan. She couldn't ... it hurt her too much. "I think I got to go too." Brooke said making her way to the bathroom. Peyton and Cassidy looked at each other and stood up. "Let me guess your going to the toilet too." Jake asked trying hard not to laugh. "You know us girls cant go pee alone." Peyton said looking at Nathan who looked very awkward.  
  
All the girls had assembled in the bathroom. Brooke just looked at Haley than Peyton and started to laugh. "This isn't funny!" Haley shouted at her friend. "Oh come on Hale's. How is this not funny". Slowly a smile crept onto Haley's face. "That's Nathan. Nathan Nathan?" Cassidy butted in. "Yep, that's him." "He's cute!" all the girls just looked at Cassidy with the 'don't go there' look.  
  
Lucas, Jake and Nathan had taken the girls seats soon after they all left. "Sooo, you're Nathan." Leo asked looking at him. Nathan looked at Leo and then at Lucas. "For as long as I live I will never trust you and your stupid closed eyes and pointing finger again." Nathan said referring to how they decided to go to New York. Lucas just looked at his little brother and laughed. "Don't blame the finger."

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Ok so how did everyone like that chapter? Please r&r. 


	4. Chapter Four

**It can't be you!  
**  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary:** Haley's world is turned upside down when her past become her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating:** PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

**A.N:** The internet bill came today so basically I thought I was a dead girl, but me being the sweet and innocent girl I am, I got away with it.... by blaming it on my sister. Who isn't in the county to deny the claim. LOL. Ok I'm officially evil.... I kinda like it...

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The girls came out of the bathroom ten minutes later. Cassidy and Anna had grins plastered on their faces but Haley, Brooke and Peyton were trying to hide the fact that this situation was so screwy. Not only for Haley and Nate but for Brooke and Lucas as well. Anna and Cass sat back in their seats while the other girls stood staring at the occupants of theirs. "Oh hey there you are, we thought you guys had fallen in." Jake said trying to lighten the mood. "Ha ha, very funny. Now get the hell off my seat Jygalski." Peyton retorted smugly. At the same time all three boys got up from there seats to let the girls sit back down.  
  
Haley didn't dare look Nathan in the eyes in fear she would get lost in them like she had many times before. Haley stood near Brooke but moved back towards her seat when the boys got up. The brunette smiled at him gratefully, finally getting a full glimpse of him. 'If it was even possible he had gotten taller. The man was a giant'. Haley could smell his cologne as he shuffled past her. It was intoxicating. Being around him again made her stomach do cartwheels and Haley hated that he still had this effect on her after so many years.  
  
Haley was just ignoring him. Even though he had done the exact same thing to her at the café. It still hurt. And the worse thing was Nathan didn't know why it hurt. He was over Haley James.... Wasn't he? Nathan's head was spinning out of control with all the thoughts and questions he was asking himself. He quickly snapped out of his daze when hearing Brooke's voice. "Hey we should head off" she said to her friends. "Yeah" Haley jumped at the chance to get as far away from 'him' as possible. "You three can have the table since were finished" Brooke said as calmly as she could. "OR..." Anna started her sentence while ignoring Brooke and Haley's glares; she was determined to finish it. ".. you three could just skip food and dive into the wonderful land of alcohol... With us, were going clubbin". Haley was silently praying, 'please lord...let them say no. pleeeeaaaassseee!' a minute passed and everybody was silent. Lucas looked at Brooke who was blatantly ignoring him finding something across the room to look at.  
  
Nathan looked at Haley's small form sitting at the table. He could see her cringe at hearing Anna's proposal. She didn't want to be near him. 'I guess nothing has changed' Nate thought to himself. But she couldn't run from him now. This wasn't Tree Hill. She was just gonna have to deal with it.. He wasn't going to turn down a night out on the town because of her. And there was nothing in the world Nathan loved to do better than to piss her right off.  
  
"Hey sounds like fun" everybody looked up at Nathan in shock. Lucas would have thought that Nate would rather have dinner with Dan than see Haley all night. But Lucas should have stopped being so presumptuous, because his brother was harder to figure out than a 'Dawson's Creek' episode. From the corner of his eye Nathan saw Haley's head snap up in shock.  
  
Brooke looked at Nathan and knew exactly what he was up too. And she was the only one. "Oh I'm sure you three boys have something better to do than to come out with us! We wouldn't want to ruin your evening." she smiled sweetly at Nathan. Again everything was silent in the group. Lucas saw right through Brooke. She hadn't even looked at him since she came out of the bathroom. She just pretended that he wasn't there but he was and Lucas wanted his presence to be acknowledged by her. "Actually, Anna that sounds great... we didn't have anything on tonight so don't you worry" Luke directed the latter of his sentence to Brooke. Haley and Brooke exchanged looks while getting up from their seats. "Ok so I guess we sorted that one." Nathan chimed in smirking at Haley.  
  
All the guys had gone to get the coats in the cloakroom leaving two very angry brunettes. "Anna, what the hell are you doing?" Brooke yelled at her, furious that she now had to spend her night out with Lucas. When not receiving an answer Brooke looked at Haley pleading for help but Haley just shrugged her shoulders in defeat. 'What was Nate playing at?' Haley thought. "Oh come on ladies. This'll be fun. What's the worst that could happen?" Anna said trying to console her friends which didn't work to well.  
  
The whole group, which now consisted of Haley, Brooke, Peyton, Anna, Cassidy, Shawn, Mick, Leo, Nathan, Lucas and Jake, gathered outside the restaurant. "So is this club in walking distance or will we take our cars?" Lucas questioned Brooke trying to get a conversation started. "No, we got to take a cab. There is no way in hell I'm walking all the way there in these shoes." Brooke said pointing to her feet laughing with Lucas. She quickly stopped when she realized who she was laughing with. Noticing Brooke had suddenly tensed up; Lucas looked to his brother for help. "Well we got our cars and I'm pretty sure we could fit everybody in." Nathan said. "Ok well who's going with whom" Peyton asked not knowing how this would be sorted without bloodshed. "Well I donno. You girls sort it out and we'll bring the cars around" Nathan said gesturing to Jake and Luke.  
  
As soon as the three boys left, the girls huddled in a circle leaving the other guys to amuse themselves. "I have dibs on Jake's car and shotgun" Peyton jumped straight into the talk, shouting. Cassidy just looked at her friend and laughed. "How come you get first dibs?" Peyton glared at the dark haired girl with a smirk. "Because I'm quicker at dibbing than you are. So there." Peyton finished her not so mature line by sticking out her tongue. "Oh my god! Peyton how old are you." Haley said laughing.  
  
Once the three guys were out of sight of the girls, Luke gave Nathan a punch in the arm. "What was that for?" Nathan shouted at his brother. "How about 'sounds like fun'..." Lucas imitated Nathan, "...man what are you up too?" Luke looked at Nathan sternly. "I'm up to nothing" he said putting his hands up in defense. Jake looked on as they started to bicker between them. "You know, you two..." Jake said while opening his car door. "... you're both idiots." The Scott brothers looked at their friend drive off leaving them both in silence to think.  
  
When Nathan pulled up to the front of the restaurant a minute or two after Lucas, he was shocked to see only Haley waiting for him. 'The others must have left her with no choice', Nathan thought to himself before leaning over and opening the passenger door of his car to let her in. Haley smiled at him while buckling herself in. "So where is this place?" Nathan said with a harsher tone than he had intended, which wiped the smile off of her face. She just stared at him, at his blank expression. With an equally cold tone Haley gave him directions to the club and they were off.  
  
The first few minutes in the car were hell for Nathan. Haley James was sitting right next to him but he couldn't look at her. He was afraid that she would see past all his walls that he had put up and that she had learned to break down. Nathan gripped the steering wheel tighter making his knuckles turn white.  
  
Haley couldn't stand the silence any longer. "So, how's the basketball going?" she said hoping he wouldn't continue to ignore her. Nathan stole a quick glance at her before he answered. "Ah good." Nathan answered nodding his head. "What about you?" Haley looked at him confused. "I don't play basketball" she said laughing. "No ... I mean yeah I know..." Nathan sniggered at her. ".. I meant what have you been up too?" "Oohh. You mean other than my basketball career?.." Haley had finally broken the ice between them. ".. I just finished my exams a week ago. So, no more studying for another couple of months. Thank God." Haley turned to Nathan and smiled. "How long are you staying in New York?" she asked noticing the change in Nathan's expression. "And how did I know that was coming..." Nathan spit at her. "...you know what, when you get out of this car you don't have to speak to me again. Ok?" Haley frowned but didn't answer him. It was like he was looking for a fight or something.  
  
When they came up to the club and Nathan found a parking around the back. He switched off the engine and turned to the brunette next to him with a scowl n his face. "How did you manage to get stuck with me then?" Haley just gawked at him. "God Nathan I didn't get the short straw! I asked them all if I could get a ride with you alone... because I stupidly thought we could talk, but if you want to be a jerk, be a jerk." Haley yelled at him before reaching for the door handle and getting out slamming the door.  
  
Nathan sat in his car stunned at what Haley had just said. He jumped out of his car and locked it up before running to catch up with her. When he reached her, he caught her by the arm and turned her around to face him. "What about" Haley was stunned at the sudden closeness between them. "Huh?" Haley looked at the man in front of her, confused. Nathan could feel her squirm but he wasn't going to let her get away from him that easy. "What did you want to talk about?" he asked her again. Haley looked at the ground beneath her feet not answering him. Nathan was growing impatient. "Haley?... what about?" Haley looked up into his dark brown eyes. "I don't know." "Oh come on Haley. That's bullshit and you know it."  
  
Haley could feel Nathan loosen his grip on her arm. She knew she could just pull away from him and walk away, but something was holding her back. She couldn't break herself from his eyes. "I just wanted to see how you were." Nathan shook his head a bit. "You could have done that with other people in the car." He simply stated. "Ok I wanted you to stop ignoring me and I wanted to talk about us." Haley tried again. Nathan couldn't take his eyes off of hers. "Is there an 'us'" he whispered to her because he didn't fully trust his voice at this point. Haley let her eyes fall to the ground once again. Haley's voice was shaky. "No...yes.. look I don't kn..." Haley was cut off when Nathan's mouth crashed onto hers. Haley stood there for a second stunned before responding to his kiss. Nathan had let her arm go and circled her waist with his, locking his hands together behind her back. Nathan stroked his tongue on Haley's bottom lip asking full access to her mouth which Haley readily granted. Haley threw her arms around Nathan's neck and stood on the tips of her toes so she could deepen the kiss. Nathan was so much taller than her. Their kiss was getting more and more passionate as Nathan backed Haley up against the side of the building.  
  
The two were interrupted when Haley's phone started to ring. "Leave it." Nathan mumbled between kisses. But Haley pulled her phone out of her pocket not breaking contact with Nathan. Nathan felt her arm leave his neck so he pulled away. He watched as Haley looked at the screen and then pressed the cancel button. "Who was that?" Nathan asked watching her face. "No one" she said in such a murky tone it was hard for Nathan to believe her. "We better go in." Nathan observed the brunette as she walked away from him like nothing had happened. All Nathan could do was watch as Haley walked away from him... again.

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Ok. So what do you think? Yes? No? Please review. If there was anything that you didn't understand tell me, some of the stuff I used in this chapter people from other countries might not get. Be back soon. 


	5. Chapter Five

**It can't be you!  
  
Disclaimer:** I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary:** Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating:** PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

**A.N:** I don't have a clue what drinks people drink over in the US so I just put in my favorite drinks. Oh and by the way, Anna and Leo are dating.

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Haley hurriedly walked into the club. The heat and the pulsating of the music hit her as soon as she paid her way in. Haley scanned the booths not seeing her friends on the dance floor. She spotted Brooke, Mick, Shawn, Lucas and Cassidy sitting in a booth at the far end of the room. Mick and Shawn were talking to Lucas about none other than basketball and Brooke and Cassidy were talking to each other as Haley approached the booth. "Hey" Haley greeted the group whilst putting her phone on the table. Brooke and Cassidy looked up from their conversation to slide over to let Haley have a seat. "Where are Peyton and Jake? Or do I want to know?" Haley shouted over the music to Brooke. "Were here..." Payton said making her and Jakes presence known. ".. and we've got drinks" Peyton said waving her bottle of Budweiser back and fourth.  
  
"I'm going to go get a drink. Does anybody want anything?" Haley asked while getting up. "No, let me go..." Cassidy put her hand on Haley's shoulder indicating for her to sit down. "... I've been looking for an excuse to talk to the bartender again. You having the usual?" Haley smiled at her friend and nodded; she was a bigger flirt than Brooke. "Haley, where's Nate" Lucas had finally become aware of Haley's presence but Nathan was missing. "Ah... I think he was getting something from his car." Haley lied not looking Lucas in the eyes. "I hope I'm not late." Haley's head sprung up at the sound of Nathan's voice. "Where have you been?" Lucas asked his little brother. Nathan glared looked at Haley who was playing with the beer mat. "I was getting something from the car." He had said it like he was asking Haley. "I'm just going to the ladies. Haley come with." Brooke said noticing her friend's discomfort. "God, you girls really can't pee on your own." Jake said witnessing the scene before him. Peyton gave Jake a playful shove. "You want a dance?" she asked him seductively. Jake didn't say a word; he just rose from his seat taking Peyton's hand and leading her to the floor. Nathan watched as Brooke and Haley went to the bathroom and Jake lead Peyton to the dance floor.  
  
"I am officially the worst person in the world." Haley didn't even look behind her to see if Brooke had kept up with her when she reached the bathroom. "Why do you think that?" Brooke asked Haley while fixing her hair with the aid of the mirror. "He kissed me!" Haley just spit it out. Over the past two years Haley never could keep anything from Brooke. She had a knack for getting people to confess to things. Haley thought she should work for the CIA or something. Brooke forgot about her hair instantly when she heard those three words. "You kissed? When? Where? How?" Brooke was too flabbergasted to stick to one question, but Haley was used to it. "Outside the club..." A small smile attempted to get on Haley's face but she was having none of it. Haley leaned on the wall of the bathroom and allowed herself to slide down until she was on her honkers. "... I shouldn't have kissed him back." Brooke was nearly bursting with the news. "You kissed him back! Wait, why is this a bad thing?" Brooke asked her. "You know why." Haley said. "Oh come on Haley so what, you kissed, that doesn't make you a Bush."  
  
Nathan sat with his eyes transfixed on the girls' bathroom door. She lied to Lucas. She never lied to Lucas... well that was until he came into the picture. Nathan grabbed Lucas' beer and took a gulp of it. Lucas didn't notice because he was still talking to the two Irish guys. Nathan spotted Haley's mobile phone lying on the table. Without further daily he picked it up and went to the 'received calls' section. Nathan checked who the last person to call Haley was. The screen read 'Simon'. Nathan face fell. 'It's probably her boyfriend.' Nathan thought to himself putting the phone back where it was before. Nathan could feel the anger build up inside of him. 'Why does that guy get her?'  
  
"Brooke, Simon and me... it's just we haven't technically broken up, you know." Haley whimpered still in sitting against the wall. "Haley, Simon doesn't know about the whole kissy thing, so just call him and brake up with him." Brooke said hunching down beside Haley so she was eye to eye with her friend. "What if I don't want to brake up with him?" Haley stared at her feet knowing Brooke was going to say something Haley didn't really want to hear right now. "What? But I thought you and Nate were on again? I mean you were all tryin' not to be smiley but you know you can't hide that shit from me." Brooke laughed trying to get Haley to smile. "I know... but Nathan and me, we don't work. With him it's hard but with Simon, he's reliable. Steady." Haley laughed at her own words. "Haley you don't need or want 'reliable and steady'. You need fun and... and butterflies and spending five hours deciding on what to wear. And hunny... that's Nathan."  
  
Brooke and Haley came back to the booth a few minutes later. "Guys stop pestering Lucas." Haley barked at her to friends. Although secretly Lucas loved the attention, he wanted it to come from a certain brunette. "Hey where the hell is Cass with my drink?" Haley asked Mick avoiding Nathan's glare. "She hasn't come back yet." He simply stated. "Great. I'm going to the bar. Oh and where are Anna and Leo?" Haley asked just realizing there absence. "They bailed. They had things to do. Or rather each other." Shawn replied laughing. Brooke started to laugh when Haley just rolled her eyes at her friend's immaturity. Once Haley left, Nathan got up from his seat between Brooke and Lucas. "I just... I'm going to get a drink." He gave Brooke a reason even though she didn't ask for one. "What? I didn't ask." Brooke smirked while putting her hands up in defense.  
  
Nathan spotted Haley at the bar trying to get the barmaids attention by waving money over the counter. The barmaid was ignoring her only taking orders from men. "Agh unbelievable!" Haley said to no one in particular. From behind her Nathan snatched the money out of her hand. This made Haley make a 180 but she was shocked to see Nathan just standing there looking at her. "Here, I'll get the drinks." He handed Haley her money back and took out his wallet and grabbed a twenty. Nathan bent over Haley who was still facing him and shouted at the barmaid. When Nathan leaned over her, Haley couldn't help but breath in the scent of his cologne. "Can I get a peach snaps with red lemonade and a Carlsberg?" Haley just watch stunned as Nathan rhymed off her drink. 'He still remembers what I drink'. Haley let a small smile appear on her face. Nathan looked down to see Haley stare up at him intently not moving an inch away from her. He just had to say it. "So who's Simon?"

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T**hanks to all my reviewers.**

**Aiesha: Thanks for reviewing each chapter and I do try to update as fast as I can. **

**Sara: Thanks that is the best complement anyone can get so I just hope that I can keep it up. **

**Steph: thanks ill be updating my next chapter soon. Emily: Well I hope you like this chapter. **

**Kaya: Thanks for your review. Helps me write faster.**

And a big thank you to all the reviewers of my other chapters. Gen. crazymaria. Mandy8706. angieeLUVSnaley-sethc. Onetreehillgirl. Hope165. NaLeY-LuVeR23. please keep reviewing.  
  
So what do you think? Please r&r.


	6. Chapter Six

** It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

**A.N: **This chapter doesn't have a lot of jeyton or brucas because this chapter was really about getting the naley in but I'll try to fit some in the next chapter.

I also don't have a bulls notion how much drinks cost over there so I made it up. lol.

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Haley just looked at Nathan in shock. "What?" Haley couldn't understand how he would know. Unless Brooke had told him, but she wouldn't do that. "He was the one who called you when we were ... um... outside. Who is he?" Haley shook her head she didn't know what to say. "How do you know he called me?" Haley asked, her voice letting her down as it trembled. Nathan hadn't move from his spot in front of her and he wasn't giving her any room to maneuver so she could just run away. "Your phone" Haley expression turned ice cold. "You looked in my phone?..." Haley said raising her voice. "I can't believe you. You have no right to go through my things especially my phone." Nathan was growing tired of Haley changing the subject from her to himself. "Answer the question Haley.... is he your boyfriend?" Nathan's voice dipped with his question.

Haley was still furious at him for going through her phone. "Yes, Simon is my boyfriend." She said still practically yelling at him. Nathan just stood there not saying anything, looking deep into her eyes. He didn't know what he was looking for but he didn't see it. The silence was broken by the barmaid. "Here you go, that will be eleven fifty." Nathan handed her the money and waited to get his change. Haley was just standing between Nathan and the counter. Not moving an inch, searching Nathan's face for a reply. Nathan then shoved his change into his pocket and picked up his drink off the counter and backed away from Haley. "Nathan..." Haley called out after him and Nathan just turned to her again. "Hale's ... that all I needed to hear..... enjoy your drink." He then left Haley on her own.

Haley sat at the bar taking in Nathan's cold words. It was like their kiss meant nothing to him. 'Maybe it didn't mean anything to him.' Haley thought while bringing her hands to her lips remembering it. 'Simon, Haley he is your boyfriend. Not Nathan.' Haley told herself. She turned to the bar and knocked back her whole drink. "Hey can I get a ... a... whiskey." Haley yelled to the barmaid getting her attention. The brunette needed something stronger to calm her stomach. And down that drink went in one fast gulp. Haley glanced up at the booth all her friends were sitting in and scanned over all of them till she came to Nathan. But he wasn't alone he was sitting alone side a very busty blonde. Who to Haley, didn't look very innocent. She turned back to the barmaid and put her glass in front of her. "Will you fill that up please." Haley said looking at the girl in front of her. "One of those nights?" was all the girl could say staring back at Haley frowning while filling her glass. "Ohh yeah!" Haley said giving her the money.

When Nathan finally got to the booth he was met by Brooke. "Well?" Nathan just looked at Brooke with his eyes wide. "Well what?" he said taking the empty seat next to her. Brooke leaned closer to Nathan not amused by Nathan's avoidance of the subject. "Don't 'well what' me Mr. Scott. What happened with Haley?" Nathan looked away from Brooke and glanced down at the bar. "Nothing... she has a boyfriend." Nathan said coolly before turning his head back to her. Brooke shook her head laughing. "Like that has ever stopped you before." Nathan glared at the ex-cheerleader. "She made her choice." Nathan turned away from Brooke to see a tall young blonde woman. "Hi I'm Becki." The girl said in a high pitched voice. "I'm Nathan. Why don't you have a seat Becki." Nathan smirked at the blonde. 'and I'm making mine' Nathan thought to himself as he smirked at the blond in front of him.

A few minutes later, to Brooke's relief, Haley came up to the booth. "Hey all. So what did I miss?" Haley asked not looking at Nathan. "Trust me. nothing much." Brooke spat out referring to Becki. Haley through herself down on the seat next to Shawn. "What are you three talking about?" Haley asked Mick who was next to Shawn. "Basketball." Haley unconsciously glanced at Nathan and his new friend. "Ggoooddd, I got enough of that in high school..." Haley said laughing. Brooke looked at her friend and knew something was wrong. "...I don't want ANYTHING to do with basketball ever again." Haley wasn't looking at him but Nathan knew that was directed at him. Brooke shot a fierce glare Nathan way, she wanted to know what he had done to Haley.

"I'm back!" Cassidy sang making her presence known to the group. Cassidy put Haley's drink beside her now empty whiskey glass and sat next to her. "Good news on the barman front?" Brooke asked watching Cassidy's smile grow as she nodded. Haley glanced up from the table to see Nathan whisper something in Becki's ear and saw her through her head back in laughter. Haley rolled her eyes at the blonde. 'Nathan's not that funny.' She thought to herself as she watched him get up from his seat holding Becki's hand and leading her to the dance floor. Haley took the full glass that Cassidy had put on the table and downed it in one go. "I'm going to the bar. Anybody want anything?" Haley asked ignoring the concerned looks from Brooke and Lucas. Everybody shook their heads. Haley got up and made her way through the dance floor avoiding Nathan and Becki.

Brooke watched Haley walk away from the group and then disappear. She started to rise from her seat when she felt Lucas' hand on hers. "Let me go." Lucas said not moving his hand to Brooke's discomfort. All she could do was nod. Lucas squeezed her hand and smiled as he got up from his seat and went after Haley. Lucas met Haley by the bar. He watched her swallow the contents of her glass and get the barmaid to fill it up again. "Since when do you drink whiskey?" Haley turned around to see Lucas standing behind her. She rolled her eyes at him and punched his shoulder lightly. "Lucas we haven't seen each other in two years. What makes you think you I don't drink whiskey all the time?" Haley asked her words slurred. Lucas just stared at her not answering her question.

Lucas sat on the stool next to Haley. He watched her turn around in circles on the swizzle stool. "You're going to make yourself sick." Lucas shouted over the loud dance music at her. But Haley had already stopped. Lucas followed Haley's line of vision and saw Nathan and Becki dancing on the floor. Nathan chest was to Becki's back, his arms draped around her waist. Haley watched as Nathan put his hand on her stomach and pull her right against him. Lucas cringed at his brother antics. Haley hopped down from the stool nearly falling over but she quickly steadied herself. She made her way to the booth closely followed by Lucas. "Are you ready to go?" Haley asked Brooke while grabbing her phone off the table. "Yeah. Just let me call a cab." She said putting down the drink she was holding searching for her phone. "Here..." Lucas started, taking Brooke's phone from her. ".. I'll give you a lift." Brooke just nodded at the blonde boy in front of her.

The three of them were walking out the door when Brooke caught eye of Nathan and his little friend. "You two go on ahead, I'll be out in a second." Brooke whispered to Lucas. Brooke waited until Lucas and Haley were out of sight then she made her way over to Nathan. Brooke pulled Nathan away from Becki with one move. "What are you doing?" Nathan said annoyed that he was disturbed. Brooke shoved Nathan hard in the arm giving him a warning look. "You're an idiot. Do you know that?" Nathan rolled his eyes at her. "What are you talking about?" Nathan asked. "You know full well what I'm talking about. Haley just left drunk out of her head and it's because of you." Brooke screamed at him. She took a second to calm herself. "I hope you're happy Nate." With that Brooke left. Nathan just stood there not able to say a word. 'What the hell am I going to do' Nathan thought to himself running his hands through his hair.

Brooke quickly made her way out to Lucas' car and got in the front. "Where's Peyton?" Haley asked, her words running together. Brooke turned around and faced her friend. "She's staying on a bit longer and Cassidy is getting a cab home with the others." Brooke informed Haley giving Lucas an uneasy look. Lucas looked at Brooke and mouthed 'She will be o.k.' Brooke glanced back at Haley and saw her fast asleep.

After a quiet ride home, Brooke turned to wake Haley. "Haley... Hale's ... were home. Come on." Brooke coaxed Haley out of the car and onto their building. She turned back and looked at Lucas who was in the car. Brooke smile at him before closing the door. She helped Haley up the three flights and opened the door to their apartment just in time to rush Haley to the bathroom, before she threw up.

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**Aiesha: Hey thanks for reviewing every chapter. I know Nathan is better for Haley but he would be great for me. Lol... Your reviews are helping me to write faster and hopefully better. xx.Big kisses.xx**

**burning-firestarz-flame: Well I hope you like this chapter. Keep reviewing please.**

**LET: It's unbelievable to think that people like my story enough to say 'it's one of the best', so thank you so much. And please review my next chapters.**

**truetreefan1: I'm really sorry if that's the way some of the people seem in my fic and I'll try to change it. I do try to make the characters true to the show; I hope I haven't put you off my story. Please review again. **

**Kaya: You're right all the shows are great. And I'm so happy that you think that my story is near to the standard of the actual show. Thanks a million.**

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Thanks to everybody who reviewed. And please don't stop, all kinds of reviews are welcomed.

The next chapter should be up in about 5 days. So look out for it.

Thanks all. Sarah


	7. Chapter Seven

** It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

**A.N: **Hey guys, sorry this took a long time. My sister was in hospital and now she's out and she is very annoying because she can't do anything to 'strenuous' which means we have to wait on her hand and foot. Fun huh? And also my other sister is always on the computer so I don't get a lot of time to write. So sorry about the wait. Hope you like this chapter. Please review.

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Haley woke the next morning with the biggest headache she had ever gotten. But then again Haley had never had so much to drink that she had thrown up before. 'I hate hangovers' Haley thought to herself as she pushed herself out of her bed making her head hurt even more. She squinted her eyes to adjust to the light as she pulled open the curtains. "Stupid sun!" she said taking in the view from her window. The only time she would have liked, even welcomed the rain, the sun had to be shining. Typical.

Haley walked slowly into the kitchen to only see it empty. She glanced at the clock on the cooker. It read 09:07. 'Oh for crying out loud. It's too early'. Haley whined to herself as she made her way to the bathroom to get cleaned up. "Aaaggghhh" Haley quickly shut the door and fled back into the kitchen. While trying to catch her breath Haley grabbed her chest.

Brooke emerged from her room rubbing her eyes. "What! What is it?" It was all she could say. She looked questionable at her friend. Haley stood shocked. "He... the bathroom... no clothes..." Haley couldn't string a full sentence together. "Haley, take a deep breath and tell me, in English, what happened." Brooke said trying to calm Haley down. She did as she was told and took a well needed breath and started again.

"I was going to the bathroom and..." just then Jake came out of the bathroom wearing what he had on the night before. "Sorry about that Haley." Out of nowhere Brooke broke into an uncontrollable laughter. "Haley your face is so red." She got out in between laughs. Haley shot Brooke a warning look before heading towards the bathroom.

"Nathan get up!" Lucas had been trying to get his brother out of bed for the past half hour. Lucas wasn't exactly pleased with Nathan's handling of last nights 'situation' and he was going to let him know about it. Lucas knew he didn't know the full story but he knew that Nathan and Haley hadn't talked since graduation. And now they were just catapulted into each others worlds.

"Two more minutes." Nathan mumbled from under the pillow. He had being trying to get the sound of cars beeping from reaching his ears by placing his pillow over his head. "You said that twenty minutes ago. I'm going out for breakfast in ten minutes and you're not staying in this hotel room for the rest of the day. So if you're not up in ten minutes I'm gonna hold that pillow down on your face real hard until you cant take another breath." With that threat Lucas left Nathan's hotel room. 'God, he really isn't a morning person' Nathan thought to himself while heading for the shower. "And how the hell did he get in here?" Nathan shook his head it was too early for thinking.

Haley came out of the bathroom a few minutes later to see Brooke, Peyton and Jake sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast. "How's the head?" Peyton asked watching Haley put a pop-tart in the toaster. "It's better than when I got up." she replied smiling. "I never knew you were a drinker Haley. But then again I also thought you were a knocker." Jake said not being able to let that one slide. "Ha ha very funny Jygalski." Haley said giving him a glare before everyone started laughing.

After Haley disappeared with her food into her room Jake just had to ask again. "So when did Haley start drinking so heavily?" he asked as he took another bite of his toast. It didn't go unnoticed to Jake the look that the two girls shared. "What?" Jake said laughing at the two girls. "Something kinda happened between her and Nathan last night." Brooke answered plainly. "Oh... so I'm guessing from her hangover that didn't work out very well." Jake replied lowering his voice when he heard Haley's door open when she returned t the kitchen.

Haley was left alone in the kitchen thinking while Brooke went to work and Peyton was showing Jake around the city. Haley had contemplated calling one of the girls to see if they wanted to do anything but decided against it. Haley thoughts were interrupted the faint sound of. "The A Team" Haley said confused. The sound was coming from Jake's jacket which he had left. Haley searched the pockets and found his cell phone. 'Lucas' was flashing on the screen. Haley paused for a second not knowing if she should answer Jake's phone. 'I doubt he'd mind. It's only Luke anyway' Haley thought to herself while pressing the call button.

"Hey" Nathan stood in shock recognizing the voice. He pulled the phone from his ear to check if he had called Jake like he meant to. He had. 'Why is Haley answering Jake's phone? Why does she even have it?' Nathan's thought were interrupted by Haley. "Hellooo.... Lucas?" Haley asked when no one answered her. "Naw, its Nate. Is Jake there?"

Haley gasped at the sound of Nathan's voice on the other end of the line. Haley scoffed at Nathan's attempt at a hello. But if he wanted to act cold towards her, she would dish it right back. "No he's out. Can I take a message?" Nathan thought Haley sounded like a secretary. "Ahh no. Where did he go?" he asked knowing full well what Haley was doing. "I don't know but I'll tell him you called when he gets back. Bye" Haley said in a very fake happy voice. "Haley wait." Nathan yelled down the phone trying to get her attention.

Haley's forehead was creased as she took a deep breath before letting him know she was still there. "What?" There was no tone in her voice as she answered him. "I want to talk." Nathan said practically asking her. "You want to talk. Well gee Nathan, colour me confused because what are we doing now?" Haley spit out at him not trying to hold back the angry tone her voice was carrying. "Well Haley this isn't talking, this is verging on arguing." Nathan simply stated.

Nathan continued when she didn't answer him. "Look, we didn't really get a chance to talk last night so..." Haley interrupted him. "Well whose fault is that?" she said sternly. Nathan was growing agitated at Haley's growing bitchy-ness. "Well I'm gonna take a stab at it and say it was mine." Nathan answered sarcastically. Haley was clutching Jake's phone so tightly that she was sure she was leaving nail marks on it. "Actually yeah and the fact that you kept shoving blondie in my face." Haley bit her lip knowing she may have gone a bit too far. "Why would that matter... unless you're jealous."

Nathan made it sound like a statement but really he wanted to know if he had succeeded in his task. She hurt him, he hurt her. "Oh Nathan come on." Haley laughed his sentence hoping that the falseness would go unnoticed to him. "And Haley the only thing in your face last night was a glass of whiskey, which you don't drink." Nathan had tried to ignore Haley's come back. "And how would you know what I drink?" Haley bit back at him. Nathan scoffed at the thought of Haley drinking whiskey regularly. "Because I know you Haley." Nathan said matter-of-factly. "No you don't Nathan. And maybe you never did." Nathan didn't have time to respond to Haley because before he knew it she had hung up. Nathan stood staring at the cell phone in his hand for a minute not knowing what he done.

Haley quickly shoved Jake's cell back in his jacket before going and sitting on the couch. She glanced around the room and the only thing that stood out was the phone so she grabbed at and without hesitating she dialed. It took a few rings for him to answer but he did. "Hello"—"Hey Simon, you doing anything to night?"

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**Aiesha: Thanks for reviewing. And it might be a couple of chapters before Nathan starts to fight for her. There is a bit of trouble to come before that. Mruahahaha. I love being in control.**

**LET: Hey sorry for the wait but I'm gonna try to write as much as I can for the next week. Then the dreaded uniform and books make a comeback. The next chapter will be up soon depending on reviews. Hint hint nudge nudge wink wink.**

**OTHlover04: Thanks for the review. **

**Kaya333: Thanks. This is a naley story so it will come ... eventually. I swear. **

**Poisened-Heart-Naley23: Thanks for the review the next chapter should be up soon.**

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Hey people. It's good to be back. Again sorry for the wait, I will try to update soon.

If you have any questions or suggestions tell me. All kinds of reviews are welcome as long as they help me write faster or better.

Thanks again. Sarah. xxx


	8. Chapter Eight

** It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

**A.N: **Hey I'm back. I know it kind of took me a while but anyway here it is.

Ok so in this story, Haley and Nathan didn't get married but they did sleep together. K.

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It was two hours later when Peyton and Jake made an appearance back at the apartment. "It's not my fault. You tripped all by yourself." Peyton said laughing as she came through the front door followed by a disgruntled Jake.

"Are you insinuating that I'm clumsy, Sawyer?" Jake retorted, a smile appearing on his face. Peyton turned back to face him and pinched his cheek. "Now would I do a thing like that?" Jake answered in a smooth tone. "Yeah"

Haley came into the kitchen after hearing voices. "Hey, you guys are back early." Peyton turned to face her friend. "Yeah apparently New York isn't that fun." She said mocking Jakes earlier words. "What?" Jake asked innocently.

"Nathan called for you." Haley blurted out. Jake was stunned at Haley's sentence. "For me?" Jake asked pointing his finger at himself. "No the grim reaper. Yes you." She said a fake smile plastered on her face. "How did he know I was here?"

Haley grimaced; she had hoped he wouldn't ask any more questions relating to Nathan. "Oh he called you mobile. I didn't think you would mind if I answered it." Haley said apologetically. "Naw, its fine, don't worry about it." Jake replied. Peyton had told him everything that was going on earlier so he didn't push her.

"Haley, why did you answer it if you know it was Nathan?" Peyton asked not understanding why she would have willingly talked to Nathan after last night. "He was using Lucas' phone. I didn't know it was him." Haley said explaining herself while trying to hide the sadness of her voice from her friend.

Lucas watched as Nathan finally made an appearance in the hotel lobby. And Lucas could tell his little brother wasn't in the best off mood. "Did you talk to Jake?" Lucas asked as Nathan neared him. Lucas thought it was a safe topic.

"Nope" Nathan answered in a gruff tone, not making eye contact with Lucas. "I thought you were going to call him and see if he wanted to meet up." Lucas asked looking at Nathan with a confused expression. Lucas had given Nathan his cell so he could call him. With all the rushing the day the two brothers had left for New York, Nathan had forgotten his phone.

"I did call him." He said blankly. Lucas squinted his eyes in confusion. "Wait so no one answered?" Nathan took a seat beside Lucas. Nathan noted that the lobby in this hotel was really big. It had sofas lined against the walls and in the middle was the reception. Nathan also noted that the receptionist was checking him out. But Instead of his usual smirk he just rolled his eyes at the not-so-subtle blonde.

"Oh no someone answered." Nathan answered now pretending to admire the paintings on the walls. Lucas' jaw stiffened in frustration. Nathan wasn't giving him any answers. Well any good answers. "Nathan for crying out loud would you give me a straight answer. Who answered the phone?" Nathan didn't wait a millisecond before answering. "Haley... Haley answered Jake's phone."

Lucas had opened his mouth fully intending to give Nathan some encouraging words but shut it again when he didn't have a clue what to say.

"She... she was so ... cold to me.... God she can be such a bitch sometimes." Nathan was sitting hunched over with his hand running through his hair. "Cold. Kinda like you have been every time we have seen her." Lucas offered.

Nathan knew full well that what Lucas said was true... well most of it. Lucas didn't know about what happened outside the club, now that was anything but cold, Nathan thought silently before answering him. "Why are you taking her side in this?" Lucas just stared flatly at his brother. "Don't even go there I'm not taking sides in this, you two can work this out by yourselves. And don't call Haley a bitch because she as far away from bitch as you are from being a saint. I mean, if you thought she was a bitch why did you go out with her for so long."

Nathan knew he was being irrational. But then again he was always irrational when it came to Haley. "Whoa, ok Luke. Don't go all postal on me. I'm just saying that she wasn't exactly a bed of roses when I was talking to her." Nathan was trying to calm Lucas down a bit, which for once worked.

Nathan gave Lucas a weird look when he just started smiling uncontrollably. "What?" Nathan asked. "It's just funny, when you think of Haley you automatically think of bed." "Oh ha ha. Well aren't you a laugh a minute man."

Nathan rolled his eyes at his brothers' lame attempt at being funny. Well at least Nathan thought he was trying to be funny but when Nathan thought about it, Lucas had a point. When Nathan did think about Haley he only thought about the good times they shared. Like the times he would wake up early just to watch her sleep beside him. 'No, Nate she has a boyfriend. You need to snap yourself out of this. I need a distraction' He thought to himself.

"Hey Hale's, do you wanna come out tonight? Were going to see a movie." Peyton asked walking into Haley's room abandoning Jake who was engrossed in the basketball game he was watching. It was supposed to be just her and Jake but Peyton had asked him if she could invite Haley.

Haley looked up from her book to see Peyton flop down on her bed. "I can't. Got a date." She stated while memorizing her page number and closing her book. "Oohhh, so did you and Nate work it out then?" Haley's eyes darted to Peyton's. "What are you talking about? I'm going out with Simon, remember my boyfriend." Haley answered matter-of-factly. "Well what about Nathan?" Peyton asked sitting up on the bed to get a better look and Haley. "What about him? And there is nothing to work out." Haley answered bitterly.

After that Peyton didn't want to bug Haley so she left her alone. She went into the kitchen where Jake was watching TV. "Would you do me a favor?" Jake looked up at his new girlfriend and paused before replying. "Depends what it is?" Peyton sat down beside him and nuzzled her face between his head and his shoulder making herself comfortable. "Will you call Nathan and fish for info on the Haley topic?"

"Oh no no." Jake said standing up waving his hands around in front of him in protest. He had left Peyton by herself on the couch. Peyton stood up after a second and put her arms around Jake's neck. "Please Jake." Jake looked at her questionably. "Peyton I don't want to meddle. Let them work it out for themselves." Peyton let her arms drop to her sides. "Jake come on. Nathan is being an idiot and Haley is in denial... please Jake please." Jake rolled his eyes at the blonde in front of him. "Fine give me the phone." Peyton just smirked at her boyfriend. "I knew I could break you."

* * *

**A.N:** Hey guys, how ya all been. It has been a while since I last updated but I have school and homework and chemistry equations that I don't think is even possible to do. I also haven't had a lot of reviews so if no one is reading this story I think I'll just abandon it. So if you are reading this please review and tell me if you want me to continue.

I know there wasn't a lot of naley... well none actually, but I just wanted to get their feeling straight in this one but there will be naley in the next chapter.

Again please review. It does mean a lot and it encourages me to get another chapter updated.

**LET:** Hey thanks for the review. I hope you liked this chapter, there wasn't a lot of drama but the next chapter will be full of it. The past two weeks of school weren't too bad; cuz nearly everyday there has been Mass or assembly. And I got one day off last week (I pulled a sicky) and the next day I went to an open day with the school. Fun. Please keep reviewing. Sarah.


	9. Chapter Nine

**It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing). Could get higher in later chapters. But I'll warn you before hand.

* * *

Nathan stood up from his seat opposite his brother. "I just have to take care of something. Be back in like five minutes." Lucas looked up at Nathan wondering what he was up too. "Yeah, sure." Lucas's phone started to ring a minute later and Lucas glanced around the room apologetically.

"Hello?" Lucas answered. "Hey Luke, its Jake. Agh so ... how are you and Nate doing?" Lucas scrunched up his eyebrows in confusion. Then hearing Peyton mumble something to Jake made everything clear to him. "Jake, put Peyton on the phone."

Lucas suppressed a laugh hearing the phone being passed from Jake to Peyton; Jake wasn't the most subtle person in the world and neither was Peyton for that matter. "Lucas?" Peyton asked trying to act innocent. "Hey Peyton, so what do you want to know."

Peyton took a second to sum up the situation that she found herself in. Tell the truth or tell a lie? She contemplated the question that was swimming around on her head for just a second before she came to her conclusion.

"How is Nathan dealing with the whole Haley situation? Because let me tell you something, she is not taking your little appearance to well." She spit out bluntly. There was a soft snigger on the other end of the line from Lucas before he replied.

"He's drinking in the middle of the day and he has the mood swings of a pregnant woman, so how do you think he is doing?" Lucas finished, he was a little pissed off that Peyton would think that Nathan wouldn't even care about his high school sweetheart coming back into his life. He was met with silence from Peyton.

"Peyt?" he asked not sure if she was even listening. "Um yeah I'm here. I didn't think he would take it that bad... god this is such a mess." A small smile came to Lucas' face as he thought to himself. "Yeah Peyton this is a mess, so why don't we do something about it?" Peyton thought about Lucas' question for a second. "What do you have in mind?"

Nathan reappeared beside Lucas ten minutes later smirking. "So where are we going today?" Nathan asked with a much cheerier voice. Lucas stared at his little brother not knowing what could have changed his mood in such a short time. "I donno. What's up with you?"

"What do you mean?" Nathan retorted playing dumb. Lucas wasn't even going to bother to try to figure his brother out. "Nothing. Want to go get some lunch since we missed breakfast?" Nathan just nodded in response to Lucas' question.

The two brothers sat in a small restaurant, in silence, eating their sandwiches. Nathan knew it was only a matter of time before Lucas brought up Haley and how he was being an asshole towards her. "Nate..." and there it was. Nathan didn't feel like having this conversation so he decided to play it Lucas' way.

"So what's going on with you and Brooke?" Nathan asked interrupting his brother. Lucas' eyes darted from his plate to Nathan. "Nothing, why?" Nathan looked at his brother's reaction at his question and gave himself a pat on the back. Mission accomplished. "It's just you two looked pretty cozy in the club at times."

The edges of Lucas' mouth perked up hearing this. "We were just talking." He averted his eyes back to his sandwich thinking of the smile he got from her as he left them home that night. That beautiful smile.

Nathan stood up pulling Lucas from his thoughts. "I'll just go get our jackets." Nathan headed away from the table to the cloak room, leaving Lucas alone. And at that moment Lucas realized that, the second Brooke was brought into the discussion; he had forgotten his plan to interrogate Nathan about the brunette that was more than likely occupying his mind. But they had somehow switched to another brunette.

Hours later, Haley sat in her room painting her toenails a blue-y green-y colour to match the dress she was wearing that night for her date with Simon... her boyfriend. Haley found that she was trying to keep in mind that Simon was her boyfriend and not Nathan.

And she had to admit to herself that Nathan would probably never be her boyfriend ever again. He was too hard... too complicated. And if you love somebody it should come easy to them.

Haley's thought were interrupted by the knocking on her door. "Yeah?" Haley called out. Haley's door opened to reveal Brooke with a sad expression. "So you're going out tonight... with Simon?... Peyton told me." She said softly, as if not to disturb or upset Haley.

"I am allowed to go out with my boyfriend Brooke." Haley responded knowing exactly where this was going. "Hale's, it's just that... I thought that you and Nathan were going to try to sort things out." She asked, a little wary of Haley's mood.

"Brooke come on, nothing is going to happen with Nathan and I. And you and Peyton are just going to have to get used to that fact." Haley had given up on painting her nails once Brooke had walked in the door.

Brooke sat on the edge of Haley's bed watching her put her nail polish away. "Haley, something could happen, if you just let it. Why are you so dead set against the idea of you two getting back together?" Haley took a deep breath and tried to gather a reasonable answer to Brooke's apparently simple question.

Haley sat in silence for a minute. "Brooke, I'm trying to get ready here." Her words came off more defensive than bitchy. Haley watched as her best friend left her to get ready for a date that she really wasn't in the mood for.

Brooke left Haley to get ready and headed to the living room. She watched as Peyton and Jake hushed as she entered the room. "What's going on?" Brooke asked curiously. "Ok don't be mad at us" Peyton said pointing to Jake and then herself. "Ah excuse me I had nothing to do with this so just keep that little finger pointing at yourself." Jake interrupted laughing. "Why do I have the feeling I'm not going to like what's about to be said." Brooke said.

"Well I though... that maybe... Haley and Nathan might like a little push in the right direction." Peyton explained in a low voice making sure Haley couldn't hear. "No Peyton. No set ups. There is a word for it, its called interference. And it's none of our business." Brooke said waving her arms around in the air emphasizing her answer.

Standing in front of her full length mirror, Haley looked at the reflection staring back at her. She couldn't stop thinking of Brooke's earlier question. The one which she didn't have the answer for. In truth she really didn't know what was stopping her and Nathan getting back together.

"I mean it's been two years. We aren't the same people anymore. We've grown up." Brooke stood at the partly opened door, listening to Haley debating her relationship with Nathan or the lack of her relationship with Nathan. Brooke's whole face dropped at hearing Haley's heartbreaking tone.

Brooke backed away from the door not wanting to let Haley know she had been listening. She walked into the living room and sat opposite Peyton and Jake. Brooke clamped her hands together staring at the couple in front of her. "So what's the plan?" A huge grin appeared on Peyton's face. "Ooohhh boyyyyy!!" Jake said making a quick exit.

"Nate?" Lucas called into his brother's hotel room. "Yeah?" Nathan stood in his room and looked himself over in the full length mirror. He wore jeans with a dress shirt and jacket. Lucas stared at Nathan in confusion. "Where are you going?" Nathan turned to face him. "Out."

Lucas should have known this would have happened. He had to get around this somehow. "Yes, you are going out. With Jake and me!" Nathan stood stunned at Lucas. "Ah no. I'm going out with... with ... Rebecca." He stood proudly at remembering the blonde receptionist's name.

"Come on Nathan. After we go back to school we probably won't get to see him again for a long time. Do you even have reservations?" Lucas tried to persuade him, just hoping that he had forgotten to book in advance. "Shit the reservations. I knew I forgot to do something." Nathan ran his hands through his dark brown hair.

"Don't worry about it. I'll call the restaurant and tell them to have room for a few extra people." Lucas said, quickly noticing his blunder and hoping it would pass right over his bothers head. Which it did and Lucas thanked God for it. Lucas watched Nathan nod and go back to getting ready.

As Lucas left the hotel room, he pulled out his mobile and phoned Peyton's flat. Brooke voice filled the receiver with her chirpy tone. "Hello?" Lucas took a deep breath and gathered all the courage he could to answer her. "Hey its Lucas, we kinda have a problem."

Brooke could help herself from smiling at hearing his voice but she wasn't going to let him know that. "What kind of problem?" She looked back to Haley's room where her and Peyton were. "Nathan is bringing a date." Lucas heard the groan come form Brooke and awaited her reply.

"Well she is bringing Simon. So this just might be what they need... to see that they miss each other and that they cant live without each other... do you think this will work, I mean they haven't had a decent conversation in two years?" Brooke bit her lip realizing how her last sentence could have referred to her situation with Lucas.

"Brooke, this is for there own good, trust me?" Lucas paused for a second wanting to hear her response. But she never did. "Listen I have to go, I'll see you later." Lucas was about to object but he was met with the dial tone. He stared at the phone for a second and then put it back in his pocket. "Well tonight is going to be fun." He thought aloud.

* * *

**MacDaddy176:** Thanks for taking the time to review the story. And I appreciate you calling it awesome. I will have another update hopefully in the next week. Please review again. Sarah :)

**Megz: **Yes I have decided to continue the story. I am so sorry about the lack of updates but I have so much stuff to do for school. Thank for all the reviews you have submitted to this story, it means a lot when someone reviews a few chapters. So thanks. Sarah.

**ilvjameslafferty23: **I am really sorry that there isn't any naley in this chapter but the next chapter will have a whole bunch. Thanks a lot for the review. Sarah.

**A.N:** Hey guys, I am so sorry it's taken so long for an update but here it is and I hope you like it and it is a little longer than usual.

I should have updates on all my stories (including another chapter of this) over the next week or so, as I have a week off to mid-term. Woo hoo.

So please review and tell me what you think of the story so far and please give me any ideas that you have on what you would like to see in upcoming chapters. Slan. Sarah.


	10. Chapter Ten

**It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing).

**A.N:** Hey guys the is kind of showing the different point of views. Does that make sense?

* * *

Haley sat opposite Simon trying fiercely to listen to what the blond man had to say. "Haley?" the sound of his voice brought her back to the world she had temporally abandoned.

"Sorry, Simon, what were you saying?" He leaned back in his chair and looked at her confused.

"Nothing it doesn't matter. I have to go to the bathroom, I'll just be a minute." Haley nodded her head and when the man was out of sight she called the waiter over with a wave of her hand and a raise of her eyebrow.

"Can I get another glass of wine?" She asked politely. Only a minute passed when the waiter came with a full glass. "Thank you." Simon reappeared looking a little nervous.

"Haley, are you all right? You seem a little distracted tonight." Haley consciously smiled at him. She had spent the last twenty minutes practically ignoring him. 'Focus' she willed herself.

"Yeah I'm fine... just a little worried about the exam results coming out." She lied. Haley felt his hand on hers and she suddenly felt on edge, around him. Her boyfriend. She shouldn't feel this way. Haley just wanted to be tucked up in her bed with a good book.

"The results aren't going to be out for another month. Just don't worry about it; I'm sure you'll do great." Haley smiled at his reassurance and she was nearly sure that that line would have worked if she was indeed worried about her results. But she wasn't.

Haley nearly choked on her chicken seeing Brooke, Peyton, Jake, Lucas, Nathan and some blonde walk through the door. "Hale's you o.k.?" Simon asked concerned.

"No." She said quietly while getting up from her chair. "I'll just be a second." Simon nodded noticing Brooke and Peyton come into the restaurant.

Haley pulled Brooke aside without the others realizing. "What are you all doing here?" she asked emphasizing the 'all' in her sentence. Brooke plastered a surprised look on her face and began to talk.

"Haley I thought you said you were going to the French place." She said convincingly. "No Brooke I didn't say where I was going... but you have to leave."

"Haley the guys had these reservations for like a week now, we cant just leave. We won't get in anywhere else." Brooke said to the small brunette beside her.

"What do you mean your double booked?" Lucas asked the matron loudly. Brooke rolled her eyes at the blond; he really wasn't a good actor.

Noticing Haley, Nathan visibly tensed up. She looked beautiful; she wore a light blue dress that clung to her body in all the right places. She was wearing her hair down so that it hung lightly on her shoulders.

"Are you all right Nate?" Rebecca whispered seductively in his ear. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her busty blonde who was hanging on to his arm. Nathan was paying a lot attention; it just wasn't to his date.

Nathan just nodded and pulled his eyes from Haley who was currently giving Brooke a very evil stare. Looking away from her he noticed Peyton and Jake didn't seem to be worried about the double booking.

"Please tell me you didn't do this." Nathan hissed to Lucas. He pretended to not hear his younger brother but inside Lucas was blowing up. The plan was in stage one and soon to be stage two.

"Well I guess your leaving..." Haley said triumphantly to Brooke. "pity." She said with fake sadness. "Hey what's going on Haley?" Simon asked putting his arm around Haley's petite waist.

Lucas, Peyton and Jake had now entered there circle leaving Nathan alone with Rebecca. "Guy's I think we have to go there are no tables." Lucas said innocently to Brooke. "Hey Nathan, were going, there aren't any table." Lucas said faux disappointed.

Nathan stepped beside his brother and noticing a blond man's arm around Haley, Nathan tightened his grip of Rebecca's. Haley kept her eyes on the floor and away from Nathan's. She wasn't falling into that trap tonight.

"If the restaurant doesn't object you could join Haley and me." Simon told the group nicely. Haley felt like throwing up. 'This isn't happening' she thought to herself.

"Well only if you don't mind. We wouldn't want to intrude." Lucas replied which gained him death stares from both Nathan and Haley. "No we don't mind, right Hale's?" Simon asked her, putting a little pressure on her stomach to make sure she was listening to him.

"No that's no problem at all." She said with fake enthusiasm. Haley took a quick glance at Nathan; his arm was wrapped tightly around what's-her-face's shoulder. Haley pulled herself from Simon's grasp and made it back to the table.

As soon as the restaurant had made room for the extra tables everybody had started ordering. Haley again began picking at her food and only taking a few small bites from the dish.

"So... ah... oh hey I don't think you guys know each other..." Brooke said trying to start up a conversation. "Simon, this is Lucas, Jake, Nathan and..." Brooke purposely looked at Nathan's date and scrunched up her face. "..sorry I've forgotten your name." Brooke faked shame.

"It's Rebecca but every body calls me Bec." The blonde smiled not noticing Brooke roll the eyes. "As in the singer?" Haley laughed snidely still playing with her food. She refused to acknowledge the death glare Nathan was shooting her way.

"Well yeah but without the 'k'" she informed the small brunette who didn't seem to care for the answer. Lucas stared at Brooke who was sitting opposite him and banged his four fingers against his thumb signaling for her to talk more.

"Yeah and everybody this is Simon..." Brooke trailed off not wanting to introduce him as Haley's boyfriend.

An awkward silence filled the table. Everybody bar Simon and Haley were waiting on their food. Lucas and Brooke were silently bickering between themselves sending each other looks to try to make them say something... nothing.

Simon finished his dinner and took a glance at Haley who had left half of her dinner to get cold. Hearing his mobile sound Simon pulled it out of his pocket and read his message and then started to type in a text.

"You must really like that phone. You use it at the most annoying times." Nathan said jeering at the blond man who just looked at him in confusion.

Haley and Brooke both gasped at Nathan knowing he was referring to the 'incident' outside the club.

"Well this is fun." Jake spoke cheerfully which earned him hateful glances by Haley and Nathan.

* * *

Hey guys, well that was chapter 10. I don't know if I like that chapter very much. I kind of had to force myself to write which was probably the reason why it isn't on of my favorite chapters.

I have just set up a C2 community which is devoted to the best of naley stories (Star Crossed Lover's) so if you would like to suggest any fiction for me to post there by all means do. And please do check it out.

I should be updating 'Lies are Kinder' next so look out for it.

* * *

**Poisoned-Heart-Naley23:** Thanks for the review; I hope I didn't take that long in updating. The next chapter should be up in about a week and a half. Sarah.

**China:** It might take a while yet for Nathan and Haley to sort everything out but its coming. There will be more dinner stuff in the next chappie as well. I hope you enjoyed this one. Sarah.

**jay:** I'd say there are about five more chapters roughly but I haven't got a plan or anything so I really don't know. Thanks for the review. Sarah.

**IceBitchPL:** Yeah the date isn't exactly what Simon was looking for but who cares what he thinks, right? I said at the start that this story would also be a brucas but there really is only a teeny weenie bit of it so sorry.

* * *

Thanks to everyone who reviewed it does mean a lot when other writers give there input so thanks... again.

I'll be back soon. Sarah.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing).

**A.N:** Hey guys, I'm so sorry that I've taken this long with the next chapter but I have had studying to do and then exams. But all the exams are over so… YEAH. I'm on break now.

* * *

"Are you finished?" Haley quickly asked Simon. He had been staring at Nathan in confusion for the past minute. Haley could have just reached down the table and throttled him. She couldn't believe he said that. 

Haley drew Simon's attention back to her by reaching out across the table and taking his hand in hers. Simon looked at his girlfriend and smiled at her. "Yeah I'm done."

Nathan looked back at the menu and tried to ignore the couple at the opposite end of the table. He was going to rip Lucas a new one when he got him on his own. 'What was he thinking setting up this little get together.' Nathan thought while taking another large gulp of his wine which was brought to the table a moment ago.

Simon called the waiter over and asked for the check. The whole table was once again quite. "So when are you two Scott boys going back to school?" Peyton asked breaking the awkward silence which had settled over the table for eight.

"Soon hopefully." Haley muttered under her breath. "A week or thereabouts." Lucas answered ignoring Haley's comment. "Well actually we have like three weeks before school starts up again so we might stick around for a bit longer." Nathan said snidely looking at the brunette who was currently searching for her purse under the table.

Simon stood up and pulled his jacket on wondering what had gotten into his girlfriend. Haley planted a big smile on her face and turned to the group. "I hope everybody has a good night." Peyton looked up at her friend and smiled back. This wasn't what she had planned when she and Brooke thought it up.

"Oh you too." Nathan said before receiving a kick from his brother. Haley stood up to find Simon behind her holding her jacket. She let him help her put it on and she pushed in her chair and walk away. Haley turned and glared at Nathan. "Oh and Nathan don't worry we will."

With that Haley spun around and headed out of the restaurant with Simon. Back at the table on eyes were on Nathan as he threw his menu on the table in a huff. He always got the last word.

000

Simon and Haley's taxi pulled away from the restaurant a minute later and silence had taken over. "So what was that all about?" the blond man asked staring down at her. Haley glanced at Simon and looked away a second later. "What was what all about?"

"Oh come on Haley, dinner, you were acting really weird." Simon probed still not taking his eyes of her. "I told you its nothing, I just don't feel well." Haley placed her hand on her stomach hoping Simon would believe her and switch subjects.

000

Nathan stood up from his seat abruptly and stepped away from the table. "Lucas I want to talk to you, in private." Lucas hid behind his menu for a second but realizing that Nathan wasn't going to let this one go he followed his brother to a corner of the large restaurant after glancing at Brooke who gave him an encouraging smile.

The blond knew his brother was mad. And when Nathan was mad, he got really mad. So Lucas made a pact with himself to not aggravate Nathan any more than he already was.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Nathan asked the anger showing in his voice. "What did I do?" Lucas asked looking at his shoes.

"Don't play with me Luke I'm really not in the mood." The brunette replied ardently.

000

"Right. And why do I use my cell at the 'most annoying times'? He asked imitating Nathan's voice. Haley leaned forward in the chance that the blond wouldn't see her blush as she remembered what Nathan was referring to. "Simon don't listen to Nathan, he was being a jerk."

"So how do you know him?" Simon asked before telling the driver to about the turn to Haley's flat. "We went… to school together." Haley mumbled. "That's it. Nothing else?" he questioned. "Yep that's it. Why?" Haley lied.

000

"Ok fine. We-" Lucas started. "Whoa hold on a second, whose we" Nathan asked emphasizing 'we' in his sentence. "Agh me, I meant me, all me, I did this, it was all me." Lucas stammered. "So let me guess Brooke helped set this whole thing up?"

"Noo why do you think that, no Brooke didn't do anything…" Lucas looked at his brother and he knew that he wasn't going to be able to lie about this. "Yeah Brooke." He finished.

"Great well what did you, plural, think you, plural, were doing?" Nathan further interrogated. "Helping you and Hale's out." Lucas answered softly knowing his little brother wasn't going to like his answer.

000

Haley hated lying but she knew that Simon would just obsess about it so she told a little white lie that would save his feelings. Well that's what she told herself.

"Nothing I was just wondering. Everybody seemed a little stressed tonight don't you think" Simon shifted in his seat to get a better view of his girlfriend.

"Simon just leave it ok. I really don't wasn't o talk about Nathan anymore." Haley bit out in one breath. Simon bit his bottom lip and turned back in the seat. "Funny I wasn't talking about Nathan but I guess you were thinking about him."

000

"Lucas, agh, Haley and I don't need help and guess why; there is nothing to help with." Nathan said, his voice rising a bit louder. "Sure Nate, ok." Lucas countered sarcastically. 'Oh this is a good way in not aggravating him.' Lucas thought to himself.

"Don't ok me Lucas just stay out of it!" Nathan shouted the later of his sentence taking the attention of the whole restaurant. Lucas watched his brother storm off in the direction of the restrooms.

000

The taxi stopped outside Haley's flat as she cringed knowing she was the one obsessing. "Simon-". Haley started but was cut off by the blond. "I'll see you around Haley."

Haley sat staring at him before lifting her purse and stepping out of the taxi. The brunette watched at the yellow taxi drove away. "Well I can say goodbye to that relationship."

Lucas made his was back to the table and sat down. Peyton and Jake resumed their conversation as Brooke leaned over to Lucas. "That went well." She said laughing softly. Lucas glanced to his side and smile back. "Tell me about it."

* * *

S'up? Sorry again for the wait. And for the shortness but my mom is home from work and I want to show her all my new clothes. Fun! 

I will be updating one of my other stories hopefully by Monday but I haven't decided which yet.

I'm going to Italy… yeah baby. I'm going to Sicily first then to Italy. And this is in the summer after the dreaded exams but I got my passport photos taken today, yeiks, and I'm all excited about it now so I thought I'd tell everybody.

**sara:** Thanks for the review and I know it took FOREVER but agh exams. Anyway I hoped you liked this chapter, there is a lot of dialogue but it was kind of needed. Anyway thanks Sarah. FYI, this is all because you said 'pretty please'. I love manners. Don't have any, but I love 'em.

**TinyDancer7: **Yep awkwardness was defiantly high in the last chapter and kind of in this one too. I like drama. Who would have guessed? I hoped you liked this chapter. Thanks for the review. Sarah.

**XXXkattxtienXXX:** So so sorry for the long wait but I have so much on right now and I was in town on all my days off and I go back on Monday so I may have wasted a whole week of potential fanfic writing. Shite. Anyway I hoped you liked this chapter. Sarah.

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	12. Chapter Twelve

**It can't be you! **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything except the characters you have never seen before. And I also have no claim to the shot 'green setruce'. Its feckin' lethal stuff though… I highly recommend it. Lol.

**Summary: **Haley's world is turned upside down when her past becomes her present.

**Pairings:** Naley - Brucas - Jeyton.

**Rating: **PG-13 (that's just for mild swearing).

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Sunday was supposed to be a day to rest. The one day in the week he had to himself. No work. No school. No training. The morning was usually wasted away in a deep slumber.

But not this morning. When he arrived home, earlier than he usually would on a Saturday night, Nathan went straight to bed in hope of a good sleep.

But what seemed to be a regular occurrence in Nathan Scott's life. He didn't get what he wanted.

Nathan tossed and turned in his hotel bed waiting for his exhaustion to take effect. But with no avail. He found the room either too hot, too cold or too close for him to sleep in. So he resigned to getting up at six and watching the sports channel.

Finally three hours later his brother appeared wanting breakfast. "Well the dead arose and appeared to many." Nathan mocked; looking at his brother's disheveled appearance. "All I'm hearing from you right now is blah blah blah." Nathan smirked as he switched off the TV ready for breakfast.

"Good night then?" Nathan asked as Lucas shushed him for his apparently loud voice. "I'm never touching green sutruce again." Nathan laughed and shook his head. "How'd you get started on the shots?" He asked trying to steer Lucas towards the door so they would make it in time for the breakfast menu. "Peyton and Brooke! I blame them."

Nathan began laughing at his brother once again as he watched him attempt to walk in a straight line toward the restaurant on the first floor of the hotel. "People who can't handle their drink annoy me..." he mumbled as he followed Lucas.

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"Hale's you getting' up?" Haley heard the distinct sound of Brooke's voice outside her bedroom. The sleepy brunette groaned and pulled the covers further over her head in attempt to block out Brooke.

Brooke opened her friends' door slowly and smiled at the scene before her. No limbs in sight just a large lump rested on her bed. Brooke smiled before quietly making her way across the room before climbing onto Haley's bed. She began to jump like a five year old on Christmas morning, shouting. "HALEY, TIME TO GET UP!"

Haley pushed off the quilt and glared at Brooke. "You better get off my bed this second before I beat you to death." Haley voiced sternly. Brooke stopped immediately before looking down at her friend. "You're cranky." Brooke concluded as she sat on the edge of Haley's bed.

"What happened?" Brooke asked making herself comfortable by snatching one of the two pillows beneath Haley's head.

Haley re-adjusted herself and looked at Brooke. "Why are you so cheerful at this time of the morning?" she asked. "Don't avoid the question. What happened?" Brooke asked again, this time her voice occupied the serious tone that Haley knew and hated.

"You want to know?" Haley asked sitting up on her bed and turning toward the horizontal Brooke. "Ok. I'll tell you. You and Peyt is what's wrong. You just had to go and screw everything up. Why did you go interfering in my relationship?" Brooke followed Haley and sat up and looked her straight in the eyes. "Haley, what happened?" she inquired concerned.

"I think Simon broke up with me." Haley informed her, still slightly angry. "What do you mean 'think'", Brooke asked. "He said something along the lines of 'I'll see you later." Haley said imitating Simon's word and tone.

"Did you two have a fight?" Brooke probed further. Brooke really did not mean to cause Haley heart ache but she didn't belong with Simon. "Sort of." Haley answered softly. Haley lowered her head knowing what was to come. She really didn't want to tell Brooke that Nathan was the butt of her and Simon's fight.

"What was the fight about?" Brooke asked knowing full well what the answer would be. Haley looked out the side of her eyes at Brooke; guiltily. "Nathan." Brooke proposed. Haley took a deep breath and fell back onto her bed. "Who else?"

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After ordering their breakfasts, Lucas and Nathan sat in silence at their table. "So what time did you get back at?" Lucas asked starting on his BLT sandwich. Nathan looked up at Lucas from his coffee. "Like ten minutes after I left the restaurant." He answered truthfully.

"No Bec" Lucas questioned knowing he was walking into dangerous territory. "No Bec, but that was all up to you and Brooke. Thanks for that by the way." Nathan voiced bitterly.

Lucas swallowed his last bite of his sandwich and straightened up in his chair. "Oh come on, you didn't even like her." Lucas mentally crossed his fingers in hope that his brother had not been attracted to his previous night's date.

"That's beside the point," Nathan scolded Lucas "... don't ... just leave the whole thing alone." Lucas took a breath of relief; he had thought that she would have gotten his head bitten off for his actions.

But Lucas just had to reaffirm the point he was making the night before. "You still have to talk to her, you know. You can't leave without sorting this out."

Nathan had had enough. He shoved his chair back abruptly and stood up. "I said leave it alone, Luke. It's none of your business what happens between Haley and me." Nathan finished loudly and stormed out of the restaurant.

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Hey guys. Long time no fanfiction writing. I'm really sorry about the long wait but I just had my leaving cert, so I haven't had a lot of spare time on my hands. I only have my chemistry exam left so I should be updating all my fics in the next while.

There was no naley in this chapter but there will be in the next chapter so don't fret.

Please tell me how I'm adjusting to life back in fanfiction by reviewing this chapter.

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**ilvjameslafferty:** Oh hey it could be a while till I get them together but I haven't got a plan so you never know. Sorry again for the really really late update. Hope you liked this chapter. Sarah.

**Aiesha:** Well I do love my drama. It wouldn't be a naley fic without the drama drama drama. Thanks for the review and sorry to have kept you waiting. Sarah.

**Jen-me-ster: **thanks for the compliment but I have to definitely up my game to compete with the other authors on this site. I'm glad you're liking the story and please review again. It's a great push to just sit and type. Thanks. Sarah.

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THANKS TO EVERYBODY. 


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